Flying By The Instruments
Aug. 31/2005

Just like it takes the most fuel for an airplane to take off and become airborne, it takes the most effort for a person in recovery, to begin gaining some ‘altitude’ in their emotions. Once an airplane is airborne and flying at its recommended altitude, it takes considerable less fuel to travel through the air. Emotional recovery is much the same way. Once you’ve learned the principles of emotional wellness, and your faith is strong, it’s easy for you to travel the rest of your life in relative ease.

But as it can be on some flights, stormy weather can come up making it difficult or impossible to see where the plane is headed. It is at these times that a pilot must 'fly by the instruments'. And thank God for instruments! They can mean the difference between landing safely and crashing perilously. And so it is in life. Life can become so difficult that you can no longer see where you are going, and you lose that sense of balance, or inner confidence and find yourself seriously questioning the meaning of life and what your role is in the grand scheme of things. It is at these times that you must know how to fly by the instruments from a spiritual standpoint. And what are the ‘instruments’ that you fly by when you lose your emotional balance? The scriptures give us basic principles that we can hold onto when life gets tough. Apply these following beliefs when you feel your sense of peace shaken:

This can be an unquestionable truth during most times in our lives, but when under stressful circumstances, this simple truth can appear to be quite foreign, tempting us to believe that God is mad at us and is showing His dissatisfaction by all of the negative circumstances we find ourselves in. Having said that, there are times when we make poor choices in our lives and we are forced to pay the consequences, but these are not instigated by God. In these cases we make mistakes (which God forgives instantly when we repent of them), and the enemy of our soul uses these to upset us by maximizing the unpleasantness of our choice in order to make us feel shame and regret. But notice that it is not God wanting us to feel shame and regret. God is all about welcoming us when we do wrong. It is the devil who seeks to use these incidents to place fear in our lives thus causing us to quit operating in our faith and confidence. And when we quit operating in faith we quit receiving from God the graces we need to live the easy, successful life that God has for us. The truth is no matter what we do, God has a plan for us that is filled with peace and blessing. If you’ve failed God, failed yourself, or those around you, no problem - simply go to God in humility and request pardon for you sins through Jesus Christ and He will forgive you, and give you ‘Plan B’ for you to follow in order to get back on the path that leads to God’s blessings. That is what makes the Christian faith so amazing, you are only a sincere prayer away from a new beginning! The slate is clean, and you try again.
Instrument No. 1 – God loves you!

There are people in your life who honestly love you and value you. If not those in your family or friends, certainly those from a nearby church. The mandate of the church is to go out to the ‘highways and bi-ways of life' and compel people to choose Christ as their Savior, and to have their lives transformed by His love and His truth. Your family and friends may have turned their backs on you, but never the Lord or His church. His church is to be a refuge for all who need emotional support in time of need. And why would a church welcome people who are down and out? Because a good pastor knows the value of helping someone who is truly suffering. Once that person is brought back to a place of faith, and peace, they will become the best candidates for reaching others who are down and out. Have you reached the end of your rope? Allow us to help you find a pastor who will mentor you back to peace and confidence.
Instrument No. 2 you can fly by is – People Love You.

That’s right, God’s Word is the link between hurting humanity and our heavenly Father. God thought so much of His Word that He 'wrapped it in skin and bones' and created Jesus. John 1:14 bears this out where it says ‘The Word became flesh and dwelt among us’. So when you love God’s Word, you are really loving Jesus. The quickest way to peace and happiness is to make God’s Word the absolute, most important thing in your life. It is knowledge of God’s Word and the applying of God’s principles in your life that transforms you into a whole new person. Do you want honest complete change? Then begin reading and speaking God’s Word and go to a church that values God’s Word. But don’t all churches teach God’s Word? Actually only 5% of the churches in any given community teach the full Gospel message, thus it is important that you find the right church. That’s why we have a Church Search webpage to help you find the best church in your area. People from centuries ago knew the value of God’s Word, and many suffered and even died so that the Word of God could be printed in the form so the common man could access it. (We really have no idea what it took for us to have God's Word in form we have it today. A good book to read on this topic is Fox's Book of Martyrs.) So, take your Bible and use it to strengthen your spirit, and you'll realize that Instrument No. 3 can be depended on!

Absolutely. If you take in positive stimuli you will reap positive feelings. That's why it is so important to watch what your mind thinks on. If you allow your mind to think negative thoughts, these negative thoughts will influence your belief's, and it is your belief's that form your feelings. When in a state where it feels like things will never get better, use your will to force your mind and spoken words to meditate on God's Word. There are reasons why you get into these states of anxiousness, and through counseling we can get to the root as to why your heart as a tendency to go places where it ought not, but for the time being force yourself to think proper thoughts using God's Word. Good verses to think on, are those revolving around God's love for you. Speak these verses until the truth hits home that God actually does love you and has an amazing plan for your life. From now on forego the opportunities to think on the things that trouble you, force yourself to sow good thoughts in your mind, and good feelings will follow.

These are just a few instruments you can use to help yourself. Just know that God has not left you. It was you who left Him, by your negative thinking. He is right there where you are right now and waits to hear from you. Talk to Him, right where you are, right now. Speak His Word continuously  and you will begin to feel strength and confidence re-enter your heart. "Let the peace of God rule in your heart", as is says in Colossians 3:15. God's peace be yours now and forever.

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